1732Government
== History ==
The area was first settled in 1732 by John Lewis and family.
1736Economy
In 1736, William Beverley, a wealthy planter and merchant from Essex County, was granted by the Crown over 118,000 acres (48,000 hectares; 480 square kilometres; 184 square mile...
1746Economy
Surveyor Thomas Lewis in 1746 laid out the first town plat for Beverley of what was originally called Beverley's Mill Place.
1747Government
Founded in 1747, it was renamed in honor of Lady Rebecca Staunton, wife to Royal Lieutenant-Governor Sir William Gooch.
1781Government
It served as capital of Virginia in June 1781, when state legislators fled Richmond and then Charlottesville to avoid capture by the British.
1815History
For instance, in 1815, a slave named Henry ran away from John G.
1828History
=== Western State Hospital ===
Staunton is also home to the former Western State Asylum, a hospital for the mentally ill, which originally began operations in 1828.
1844Architecture
=== Attractions ===
Staunton is home to nearly 200 buildings designed by architect Thomas Jasper Collins (1844–1925), who worked in various styles during the Victorian era.
1855Military
=== The Civil War and immediately prior ===
In August 1855, President Franklin Pierce visited Staunton.
1860Military
In 1860, the Staunton Military Academy was founded.
1861Military
On May 23, 1861, shortly after the firing on Fort Sumter began the American Civil War, Virginians voted on whether to ratify articles of secession from the Union and join the Co...
1864Military
On June 6, 1864, Union Major General David Hunter arrived with 10,000 troops to cut supply, communication and railway lines useful to the Confederacy.
1865Government
The first school in Staunton which allowed African-Americans to attend was established by the Freedmen's Bureau under the supervision of the commanding general of the occupying ...
1888Military
An 1840s structure, it was modified and enlarged in 1888 by famed Civil War cartographer Jedediah Hotchkiss.
1894History
The hospital was renamed Western State Hospital in 1894.
1902History
=== Postbellum Staunton ===
On July 10, 1902, Staunton became an independent city.
1908History
In 1908, Staunton adopted the city manager form of government.
1912History
In 1912, Sumter, South Carolina, was the first U.S.
1914Sports
In 1914, the city fielded a team in the Virginia Mountain League: The Staunton Lunatics.
1924History
After the passage of the Eugenical Sterilization Act of 1924 in Virginia, patients were forcibly sterilized at Western State until the law authorizing the practice was repealed...
1926History
On January 26, 1926, Staunton adopted Lady Rebecca Staunton's coat of arms for use as the city's official coat of arms and its flag.
1929Culture
Waverly Hill, a Georgian-revival house designed in 1929 by renowned architect William Bottomley with a landscape designed by Arthur Shurcliff.
1930Architecture
All of these buildings are still standing except for the Virginia Hotel, which was demolished in 1930 to make way for a planned addition to the Stonewall Jackson Hotel which was...
1932Architecture
A separate complex, The DeJarnette State Sanatoruim, was constructed in 1932 and acted as a location for patients with the ability to pay for their treatment.
1939Sports
From 1939 to 1942, the city fielded a team in the second Virginia League: the Staunton Presidents.
1944History
Roosevelt's last victory in 1944.
1946History
In 1946, after the United States Supreme Court decision Irene Morgan v.
1947History
DeJarnette was the superintendent of the sanatorium from its opening until his retirement in 1947.
1948Government
It went Republican in every presidential election from 1948 to 2004.
1950Architecture
Montgomery Hall Park was opened in 1950 after much agitation by non-white residents of Staunton.
1960History
Men's Green Thumb Park - approximately two acres and was created through a joint sponsorship by the Men's Green Thumb Garden Club and United Virginia Bank National Valley, 1960–...
1964Civil Rights
In 1964 the Staunton chapter of the NAACP threatened the city with a lawsuit if they did not immediately desegregate the public schools.
1965Civil Rights
Attorneys for the city of Staunton submitted a plan for the desegregation of its public schools in 1965 by eliminating all negro schools in time for the 1967–1968 school year, w...
1989Government
Staunton had a municipal bus system during the 20th century, known as the Staunton Transit Service, but it was dissolved in 1989.
1993Culture
In 1993, a portion of the Showtime production of Assault at West Point: The Court-Martial of Johnson Whittaker was filmed here.
1994History
Staunton is home to the Statler Brothers, country music legends who until 1994 performed free concerts at the annual Fourth of July celebration, accompanied by other country mus...
2000History
=== 2000 census ===
As of the census of 2000, there were 23,853 people, 9,676 households, and 5,766 families residing in Staunton.
2003Crime
The prison closed in 2003, and the site was left vacant for several years.
2005History
In 2005, the state of Virginia gave the original property to the Staunton Industrial Authority.
2006History
In the summer of 2006, some scenes for the movie Evan Almighty were also filmed in Staunton.
2007History
Some scenes for Familiar Strangers were also filmed in Staunton in 2007.
2008History
In 2008, however, Barack Obama narrowly carried the city, becoming the first Democrat to do so since Franklin D.
2013History
In 2013, scenes from the documentary film Rita Dove: An American Poet were filmed in and around Staunton's Temple House of Israel synagogue.
2017Culture
The Staunton Music Festival – which celebrated its 20th year in 2017 – features multiple concerts each day, with programs of music from the Renaissance to the present.
2019Culture
The Queen City Mischief and Magic festival - which celebrated its 4th year in 2019 - is a new but quickly-growing festival for Harry Potter fans, attracting over 10,000 people i...
2020Culture
Staunton is a principal city of the Staunton-Stuarts Draft Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a 2020 population of 125,433.
2024History
In 2024, Staunton became one of the few counties or county-equivalents to shift left despite the decisive loss of Kamala Harris; it voted for her by a double-digit margin, the f...